


A Love Freely Given

by Sweetpea704



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Accidental Bonding, Alpha Katsuki Yuuri, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Falling In Love, M/M, Mpreg, Omega Victor Nikiforov, Omegaverse, Romantic Soulmates, Soul Bond, Soulmates, Victuuri baby, YOI omega verse AU, fated mates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-02
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-02-17 23:14:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21651331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sweetpea704/pseuds/Sweetpea704
Summary: Alpha Yuuri Katsuki wakes up in a hotel room with his childhood crush, omega Victor Nikiforov.  An evening of passion and romance leads to a morning of uncertainty.  Yuuri remembers almost nothing, but Victor remembers love.
Relationships: Katsuki Yuuri & Victor Nikiforov, Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov
Comments: 88
Kudos: 497
Collections: Yuri on Ice





	1. The Beginnings of Wild Desire

_“Not for me the cold, calm kiss_

_Of a virgin’s bloodless love;_

_Not for me the saint’s white bliss,_

_Nor the heart of a spotless dove._

_But give me the love that so freely gives_

_And laughs at the whole world’s blame,_

_With your body so young and warm in my arms,_

_It sets my poor heart aflame.” - taken from “I Love You”_

_by Ella Wheeler Wilcox_

  
  


“Oh god, Victor...you’re so beautiful,” Yuuri couldn’t keep his face away from the omega’s neck. His scent of fresh cut roses filled his senses. The alpha nuzzled the bonding gland at the base of the omega’s perfect white neck. He kissed and nipped at the gland, eliciting moans from the man underneath him. 

“Ah, nnhg, Yuuri...Yuuri,” Victor breathed. The alpha held the omega close, his arm threaded around omega’s chest as they moved together as one.

The alpha could feel a growl building within him as his knot caught the rim of this gorgeous omega’s dripping entrance. He panted, mouthing the omega’s neck. Their bodies were hot. Sweat and slick dripped off of them, mingling the scent of roses and cinnamon. The alpha’s vision grew hazy. His mind was so full of this omega, he feared his heart would burst. All that existed in the world was the sweet pleasure of their mating, the exotic aroma of their union, and the sound of their flesh coming together...again and again.

Yuuri’s vision flashed white and a taste of copper flooded his mouth. His knot tied their flesh together into one body as they lay panting…

In the darkness, the alpha’s body continued to pump his seed into the omega’s passage. Instinct drove him to hold his lover close and lick at the wound on the back of the omega’s neck. As Yuuri succumbed to sleep, a small voice whimpered in the back of his mind.

“What...what have you done?”

9:00 AM

Yuuri’s eyes fluttered open to see a white ceiling. He moved to sit up, but a wave of nausea stopped him. The whole room seemed to be tilting to the left and then to the right. He brought his hands to his forehead, where a headache flashed suddenly.

“Oh my god,” he moaned.

“You’re finally awake. Here,” Yuuri saw a flash of platinum hair. Victor...Nikiforov? He had placed a glass of water and two capsules on the bedside table. Yuuri sat up slowly, trying to keep the room from spinning around any more. He reached for the capsules clumsily and one of them fell to the floor.

“Shit. I’m...sorry. My head is splitting open,” Yuuri took one of the capsules and sipped at the water. Victor’s hand appeared in front of him, holding the other capsule.

“Here.” 

Yuuri looked up into the other man’s eyes. His blue eyes were red and glassy with tears. Yuuri could tell that his scent was wrong. He grabbed his wrist. 

“Why are you crying?” Yuuri asked him with such sincere concern that Victor laughed.

“You don’t even remember, do you?” Victor pulled his wrist from the alpha’s grasp and sat down on the edge of the bed next to him. He bit his bottom lip and shook his head slowly back and forth, trying to hold back more tears. Victor turned his head and then Yuuri could see it...the perfect outline of his bite. He thought that it was all a dream…

“I...I’m going to be sick,” he blurted. The alpha vaulted from the bed, barely making it to the toilet before emptying the meager contents of his stomach. He dry heaved until he was seeing stars. When he was completely wrung out, he hung his head over his forearm, trying to pull himself together. 

_‘I bonded the man that I’ve been in love with for ten years...without his consent. He must hate me. My god...I’m a monster. I’m every fucking stereotype of an alpha that I’ve always hated.’_ Yuuri sobbed into his arm. Catching his breath, he watched the tears drip, drip, drip onto the the white tile floor. Victor stood in the doorway of the bathroom leaning his forehead on his hand.

“I can hear your thoughts,” Victor said softly. “Listen. It’s done. I’m not going to tell you it’s okay, but...I don’t hate you. We both drank way too much last night.” 

Yuuri turned around, still sitting on the floor, and looked up at the omega. He didn’t know what to say.

“I’ve been looking up aftercare for bonding online. There are things that we need to do...for my health, as an omega. Yuuri wiped his eyes and nose with a towel and nodded. 

“Okay.”

“We need to stay together for at least two days, maybe three if it pulls me into a heat.” Victor spoke, looking down at his phone. 

Yuuri’s eyes got wide.

_‘And, well, after that, there is a good chance that Yakov Feltsman is going to kill you.’_

Yuuri swallowed.

“I heard your thoughts...just now,” Yuuri stammered.

“You probably just now calmed down enough to hear them or you didn’t recognize them as mine,” Victor said, still scrolling on his phone. “I need you to lick the wound several times over today and tomorrow. If you think it’s gross or something, I can use antiseptics, but it’s supposed to be better for my mental and emotional health...if it’s you.” 

“I’ll do it!” Yuuri said, a bit too loud. “I don’t think it’s gross,” he added shyly.

_‘I’ll do anything for you…’_ Victor looked up from his phone and considered the alpha. The older man reached down and held out his hand.

Yuuri reached up and grabbed the offering. Victor pulled him up.

“You haven’t ever been with an omega before,” it wasn’t a question. Victor shook his head back and forth slowly. “Is your mind always...so confused?”

“I’m sorry...I’m overwhelmed, but...I want to do the right thing,” Yuuri gazed into Victor’s eyes. “I take responsibility for my mistakes.” 

Victor looked away.

“Is that what I am...a mistake?” Victor ran a hand up through the front of his hair and then dropped it to his side. 

Yuuri’s face fell.

“No...no, you...you’re beautiful. I’m sorry. I never seem to know the right thing to say,” Yuuri stepped forward and reached out his hand, but then pulled it back. He was afraid to even touch Victor. The guilt tied him up into knots. The alpha could feel waves of distress building inside his omega.

_‘What do I do?’_ Yuuri was starting to panic.

“I need you to comfort me,” Victor said plainly, angry tears fell unbidden from his eyes. “I need you to quit apologizing and be my alpha.”

Yuuri stepped forward and pulled Victor into a hug. The omega paused and then melted into his embrace. He was so warm. Yuuri closed his eyes and tried to think calm thoughts for Victor’s sake.

“Yuuri, I’m afraid,” Victor whispered into his ear. 

“I know. I’m afraid too,” Yuuri ran his hand up into the omega’s platinum hair and pushed his face into his scent gland. 

_‘I’ve got you...I’ll hold you…’_

“We’ll figure it out together, okay? We’ll just take it one day at a time. I won’t leave you alone,” Yuuri considered how best to care for the wound on Victor’s neck. 

Yuuri was a few inches shorter than Victor. So, he led the omega to the bed and they laid down together so that the alpha could reach the back of Victor’s neck comfortably. Spooned together, Yuuri held the omega close, licking the wound in long strokes. He could hear Victor sigh and relax under his ministrations. After several minutes, Yuuri could hear the omega’s breathing deepen and even out. He had fallen asleep. The alpha wondered how long Victor had been awake, dealing with everything all on his own, wondering if he would be rejected. He smoothed the older man’s hair for several moments and then rolled away, sitting up, to survey his surroundings. 

This must be Victor’s room. He recognized the costume from his free skate visible thought the partially open closet. Their clothes were left on the floor rather like a trail of breadcrumbs. He wore nothing right now, except a pair of boxer briefs and a t-shirt. He got up and hung up their suits in the closet. He fished his phone out of his suit jacket pocket. It had been on vibrate. There were about twenty messages on his phone. Most were from his coach, Celestino, but the last six were from his roommate, Phichit. Celestino must have told him that he was having trouble reaching him.

**Phichit: I’m fine. I’ll call you later.**

Yuuri dialed Celestino and then moved to the sitting area of Victor’s suite. He sank down into an overstuffed armchair.

“Yuuri? Where are you? I’ve been frantic. Did you even go back to your room last night?”

Yuuri took a deep breath, trying to keep his mind calm.

“Coach, I’m okay. I’m with Victor,” the alpha said softly.

“Nikiforov? Well, you need to tell him goodbye and start packing. We need to be at the airport in two hours.”

“I’m going to need to stay for a few more days. I...I can’t leave him.”

There was silence on the other end of the line.

“My god...you bonded him...” Celestino said softly, but with an edge of hysteria. Then, he sighed. “What do you need me to do?”

“Get my stuff and anything you think we might need. I’m new at this,” Yuuri said softly. “I guess I need you to book this room for three more days. Ah...put it in my name.”

“Ha, what you might need is a restraining order against his coach.” Celestino was quiet for several seconds, thinking.

‘Are you okay?”

“I’m a mess, actually,” he answered honestly.

“You’ll probably need to call Phichit. I called him trying to find you.”

“Thanks Coach,” Yuuri said, ending the call.

Yuuri suddenly realized that he actually knew exactly what Victor liked to have for his heats. He texted Phichit again.

**Phichit: You remember that article in “Omega Legends” that Victor did about “Ten Products That Make My Heat Bearable?” Can you dig that magazine out and send the list to Celestino?**

The phone began to vibrate madly in his hand. Yuuri answered it immediately.

“Start talking Katsuki,” Phichit said sternly.

“Phichit, I...I bonded Victor last night…” Yuuri said softly into the phone.

“Wow, Yuuri...when you do the thing, you go big...”

“Phichit, that’s not terribly helpful.”

“Hey, I’m going to want a detailed account.”

“Phichit!” 

“What? For educational purposes...”

He could hear the omega stir.

“Hey, I need to go. Will you send the list?”

“Sure.”

Victor pushed himself up with both hands and looked around. 

“Hey, how are you feeling?” 

“Sleepy, hot…” he reached up as he spoke and rubbed his eyes.

Yuuri climbed right across the bed and sat next to the omega. 

“Lay down a minute and let me care for your wound again.” Victor scooted closer to him and laid back down. Yuuri leaned over him and licked at the bite wound, while lightly skating his fingers up and down the omega’s arm.

“That feels nice,” Victor said, closing his eyes and breathing deeply.

“Victor, we should get a shower. My coach is going to bring us some stuff in a bit, in case you have your heat.”

“Yeah, we should,” Victor agreed. Victor’s suite was a little more on the upscale side than Yuuri’s room had been. His bathroom had a jacuzzi tub and separate shower, where Yuuri had simply had a walk-in shower. 

Yuuri was snapped out of daydreaming by the sight of Victor removing his shirt. He was breathtaking. 

“You think I’m breathtaking?” Victor smiled and walked toward the bathroom “You’re cute.” Yuuri watched Victor leave, still sitting on the bed. Victor turned, clutching the door jam to the bathroom.

“Are you coming?” Victor asked. Yuuri’s eyes grew wide and he followed the omega into the bathroom.

“Let me take that,” Yuuri reached for the bloody shirt, intending to soak the bloodstains on the collar. Instinctively, he brought the shirt to his nose and inhaled the scent of roses, as he ran the water cold and stopped up the drain.

Victor turned on the shower to heat the water, and then stood behind the alpha, watching Yuuri expertly work soap into the stain on his shirt. Victor was close. The alpha could feel the warmth of his body, the occasional brush against his skin. He breathed...

“I thought I’d have to throw that away,” Victor nodded toward the shirt.

“My parents own an inn. Laundry problems aren’t really problems, if you know a few tricks. For blood and chocolate, the trick is cold water.”

_‘Who are you Yuuri Katsuki?’_ Yuuri heard Victor’s thoughts loud and clear.

“I’m nobody special really...another skater,” Yuuri shrugged, as he continued to rub soap into the blood stains under the cold water. They were already nearly gone.

“You are more than that Yuuri,” Victor said, rolling the “r” in his name in such a way that made the alpha look back at him and smile. 

_Images of Yuuri dancing flashed through his mind. He was flushed, unguarded, happy...so happy. The Yuuri in the images held his arms open to him and he was rushing forward, laughing...free. He was being held, so gently, as the room spun around them._

_‘I never wanted it to end…’_

“Is that a memory?” Yuuri asked, in awe. The alpha had paused, his hands holding the shirt, still in the cold water. Victor smiled shyly at him and turned into the spray of the shower, closing his eyes and letting it wash over him. Yuuri left the shirt to soak, grabbed a washcloth, and a bar of soap. He opened the glass shower door. 

The enclosure was full of Victor’s scent of fresh cut roses. The alpha wasn’t sure how he hadn’t noticed how strong his scent was compared to earlier. Yuuri lathered up the soap onto the washcloth.

“Victor, can I touch you?” Yuuri heard in his mind at least three or four sarcastic responses, including, _‘Isn’t it a little late for that now?’_ Victor didn’t say any of them out loud. Instead, he placed his hands on the cool marble tile.

“Yes. Thank you for asking.” 

Yuuri stepped into the warm spray of the shower and ran the soapy washcloth up and down the omega’s back. He took care to clean the remnants of the evening’s love making thoroughly. Squatting down, he rubbed the soapy cloth up and down the omega's thighs. Victor leaned forward and rested his forehead against the cool tile, a moan barely audible. A blush bloomed on the alpha’s cheeks and his cock began to take a definite interest in the goings on.

“I’m going to wash your hair,” he said, taking up the bottle of shampoo that Victor had brought into the shower with him and squeezing some onto his hand. It smelled like coconut. Victor leaned his head back and closed his eyes, as Yuuri worked his hair into a lather, massaging his scalp.

Victor began to purr. Yuuri paused a moment, entranced. He couldn’t help but lean in a little closer to hear him better. He had heard that omegas purred, but he had never heard it in person. Of course, it was an intimate thing, not shared in public. Victor’s face lit with a soft smile at Yuuri’s thoughts. He moved under the spray of the shower again to rinse the shampoo from his hair. Yuuri stepped back, giving him space, and used a little of the shampoo on his own hair while the omega rinsed off.

_‘I’m hurt that you don’t remember last night…’ Victor thought._

_‘I remember snatches...like a dream...I saw you in a corner of the ballroom, nursing a drink._

_‘Are you hiding Mr. Nikiforov,’ I teased. You looked so bored. You smiled at me...but it was a fake smile...the smile you use for tv.’_

_'It's that obvious?'_

_'Yeah...’_

_‘Shouldn’t a handsome man like you be dancing with me? Oh my god...I can’t believe I said that.’_

Yuuri rinsed the last bit of shampoo out of his hair and opened his eyes. Victor stood in front of him, behind the spray of the shower, gazing at him. Water dripped from his hair, his nose. His blue eyes seemed to stare into his very soul.

“I fell in love with you last night,” Victor breathed.

_‘What do I have to lose?’_

_‘Everything…’_

“Shouldn’t a handsome man like you be kissed?” Yuuri asked softly. Victor stepped forward into the spray, into the alpha’s open arms. The kiss was soft, testing, warm...then needy. Yuuri brought his hands up to Victor’s face, pulling him closer. The omega steadied himself by placing his hands on the younger man’s hips.

_‘My alpha...he’s on his tip toes…’_

The couple dissolved into giggles, holding each other as the warm water coursed down their bodies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave comments and kudos! They keep me happily writing away. Like Dori with swimming...but with writing.


	2. A Poor Heart Aflame

_I love your arms when the warm white flesh_

_Touches mine in a fond embrace;_

_I love your hair when the strands enmesh_

_Your kisses against my face” taken from “I Love You”_

_By Ella Wheeler Wilcox_

  
  


“Victor, uh, can I borrow some of your clothes?” Yuuri walked out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist and another around his neck, which he was using to dry his hair.

“Sure. I have a few things that will do…” He tossed him a pair of black bikini briefs which Yuuri slipped on, under his towel.

_‘Shall we go for the boyfriend shirt effect, or find something that will actually fit.’_ Victor was pulling items out of his suitcase as he thought.

Yuuri smiled at _‘boyfriend shirt’._

“How about this?” Victor pulled a wine colored v-neck top. Yuuri pulled it on. It had a slim fit, so it didn’t look too big except in the sleeves, which Yuuri pushed up. 

“Thanks.”

Victor tossed him a pair of black leggings, which Yuuri brought to his nose. 

_‘Damn...These might just pull me into a rut.’_

“They are the cleanest I have. My other pants will be too long,” Victor ruffled through his bag again as he spoke. “I only wore them one morning.”

“Victor, it’s fine. They just smell really good to me,” Yuuri pulled them on. The close fit hid the fact that they were a little big.

Victor pulled on a black cashmere turtleneck and a pair of light blue jeans. The top had a slim fit. It looked like something he would wear to one of those black and white photo shoots for a magazine. He looked amazing.

“What’s the matter Victor? Your thoughts...are a jumble.” Victor turned, looking at Yuuri. One of the omega’s arms crossed his body, hugging his other arm. 

“I...want to nest,” Victor said softly and then looked away.

“This is really happening…you’re going to have a heat,” Yuuri breathed. Victor nodded his head, a blush grew on his face.

_‘I’m...his mistake…’_ the thought was there for just a second...fleeting...waiting to strike, to pull the omega apart.

_‘My words did that…’_ Yuuri thought in horror. The alpha crossed the space in three steps, pulling him into a hug. Victor was still closed off, tightly hugging his arm, trying to turn away. Yuuri let him go and placed his hands on either side of his face. His thumb swiping away a single tear. Yuuri pulled the omega’s head down so his forehead was resting on his.

“No. Listen, Victor. You are not my mistake. You’re my gift...my gift! I’m so lucky to have an omega who wants to make a nest for us.”

_‘Victor saw a flash in his mind of a poster on the wall. It was...him, younger, still with long hair. A hand reached out and touched his younger face. Wish me luck Victor! One day I’ll skate on the same ice with you. Today is the first step…’_

_‘You’ve always been my gift Victor…my inspiration.’_

Victor dropped his arms to his sides and Yuuri seized the opportunity to hold him close. He closed his eyes and brought up every happy memory involving Victor.

‘ _Cheering and yelling, like an idiot, at the television while watching the European Championships. Touching the posters of Victor in his apartment for luck before he left for practice in Detroit. Standing at the boards, watching Victor warm up, gripping them tightly as he watched him throw his quad flip...a whisper...Wow…’_

Victor’s shoulders began to relax. Warm hands came up behind the alpha’s shoulder blades and Victor rested his head on Yuuri’s shoulder. The scent of cinnamon surrounded them as the younger man instinctively released more of his scent. The tension in the omega’s body seemed to fall away.

“What do you need Victor?” Yuuri asked. “I want you to be happy and to feel safe.” 

“Nice hotels like this one usually have a nesting kit you can order. We should call the front desk.”

“Okay, what else? Victor, you should eat shouldn’t you? Let’s look at the menu. Yuuri crossed the room and dug through the pile of brochures on the desk. Finally, he found the room service menu and brought it over to the couch. Victor sat next to him, leaning closer to him to see the choices, his hands on his knees.

“This is good,” Victor pointed at a Cyrillic line of text. “It’s a chicken stew with vegetables. It’s not too heavy.” Victor ordered the stew for both of them and then a fruit and cheese tray that they could nibble on later. He also ordered sparkling waters, orange juice, and bottles of water to put in the fridge. Yuuri called the front desk and ordered the nesting kit.

There was a knock at the door. Yuuri opened it. It couldn’t be room service yet. It was Celestino. Yuuri suddenly felt strange. He grew uneasy. He didn’t want this alpha to look at Victor, to invade their space. He had never noticed Celestino’s scent before, but now it bothered him...strong, like his grandmother’s cedar chest.

“Coach, thank you,” Yuuri took 4 bags out of the other alpha’s hands.

“I couldn’t get that brand of bath bomb, but I did get a vanilla one.” The two alpha’s heard a chuckle from the sitting room of the suite.

“Yuuri, you didn’t make him get all that stuff from that article, did you? That was basically an ad set up by all my sponsors.”

“Yuuri, listen, I stopped Yakov from coming in here and dragging Victor away. How is he?”

“He’s slipping into a heat…I know we need to talk to Yakov, but I don’t want anyone to upset Victor.”

“Oh, hey, you’ll need this,” Celestino grabbed the handle of Yuuri’s suitcase. His gear bag was tied on the front with a bungee cord. He pulled it into the room.

“Just walking in here, I can tell that he’s pretty close to a heat Yuuri, some time tonight I would say. Victor, do you want to stay here with Yuuri? Are you okay?”

“Yes, I only want him...You should go now.”

_‘Yuuri, make him leave. I don’t want his smell in here.’_

“Coach, thank you for everything. Having another alpha around is making him unhappy. I’ll text you, okay?”

“Oh, sure. My wife is the same. No problem. Listen, I’ll try to talk some sense into Yakov before my flight. I was able to get a later flight for this evening. I’ll be here for two more hours.” Yuuri put all the bags on the coffee table and then walked Celestino to the door.

“Yuuri, how did you know that Victor was unhappy with me being here?”

“Oh...uh, I can hear his thoughts...from the bond, I guess,” Yuuri shrugged. Thanks again Coach!” Yuuri closed the door on a dumbfounded Celestino.

Yuuri walked back over to the couch. Victor was sitting cross legged on the overstuffed couch with one of the bags in his lap.

“Some of these things are useful. Your coach did a good job of shopping for us. You can tell that he must be married. He got lube and condoms and they certainly weren’t on that list.”

_‘You would think that a famous omega would be a good person to advertise condoms. Like, yes, please don’t impregnate me just because I’m in heat.’_

Looking in the bags, Yuuri could see now how stupid the article was. Besides the sports drinks and moon bars, which might actually be helpful, everything else would make you think that Victor was trying to have a spa day at home.

“Victor we didn’t use...did we?” Yuuri flopped down onto the couch next to the omega, hands in his hair, willing his brain to remember suavely using his mouth to rip open a condom like in a movie scene. 

His cock had the audacity to twitch, _‘You need me buddy?’_

“You know that Chris gave me three…I was carrying you on my back and he tucked them in my jacket pocket.” 

Victor sighed.

_‘He’s a nice kid...lot’s of stamina.’ Chris slipped something in my pocket and winked, patting the pocket three times. ‘Have fun Victor, you deserve to be happy my friend.’_

_‘Oh my god.’_ Yuuri turned bright red. _‘You carried me on your back? What about the pole dance?...That wasn’t a dream either. Oh my god…’_

There was a firm knock on the door startling the young alpha. Yuuri answered the door with Victor casually following behind him. When Yuuri opened the door, the smell of the food washed over him. He was ravenous. The young man wheeled in a cart and began to remove the food items. 

Victor pulled the shopping bags off the coffee table, “Put the food here please.” The omega returned to the cart and noticed the corner of a large, vacuum sealed, clear plastic bag. It took up the entire bottom of the cart. Victor pulled it off, as the young man placed the drinks on the table. Yuuri was already unwrapping the fruit tray and opening a banana. The alpha signed for the food, giving the young man a nice tip.

Victor unzipped the bag and watched the pillows and fluffy blankets puff up with air. Yuuri was struck by the change in the omega’s mood. He just seemed lighter as he squished his fingers into the royal blue fleece and pulled it into his arms.

_‘So cute…’_

Victor turned around and threw a pillow at his watching alpha, who was sitting on the side of the couch, chewing on a banana. The pillow bounced off his body. Yuuri smiled and chewed thoughtfully.

“Victor...do you want some of my clothes for your nest?” Victor stood still for a moment in thought. Victor had an image in his mind of sitting in the middle of their nest, decked out with royal blue blankets, and wearing nothing but Yuuri’s team jacket. As the image flashed in the alpha’s mind, he took in a breath.

_“Yes…please…”_

Yuuri tossed the banana peel onto the tray and retrieved his suitcase. A short time later, a small pile of Yuuri’s clothes were laying beside the bed, including his team Japan jacket. The omega had stripped the bed down to the sheet and laid down waterproof pads from the kit. Now, he was holding a blanket in his arms deciding how to proceed. Yuuri slipped his arms around Victors slim waist. The cashmere sweater was soft, belying the firm abs hidden underneath. The alpha nuzzled the back of Victor’s neck at the place it met his shoulder. The scent of fresh roses was captured in the sweater’s wool.

“Let’s eat before you do anymore. You’ll need the nutrition to have a safe heat and I need to care for your wound,” Victor shivered at the touch.

“Okay...I got distracted,” Victor pulled the blanket and Yuuri’s team jacket over to the couch and opened the crock of stew. Yuuri pulled the whole table closer to them. It was a good move, as Victor seemed to take more of an interest, picking at the rolls in the basket of bread and dipping the pieces that he ripped off into the stew before eating them.

Soon, they had made quite a dent in the tray of food. Victor took a slice of apple and topped it with a sliver of blue cheese, popping it in his mouth like a little dessert, before leaning back into the couch. He was laying across the couch with his feet across Yuuri’s lap. Yuuri leaned over and put his plate down on the coffee table, leaning back and placing a hand on Victor’s foot.

_‘What else don’t I remember?’_ The idea had begun to niggle at the back of Yuuri’s mind as they ate. Victor knew exactly what Yuuri was concerned about. Victor felt a little embarrassed by the whole thing. Really, who was he to shame Yuuri on matters of consent? Of course, bonding had rather long term implications…

Yuuri looked at Victor, a little confused. He sighed. He would have to start the conversation, he supposed.

“Victor, did I force you?”

“Yuuri, I’m taller than you. I outweigh you. I carried you up to my room with three condoms tucked in my pocket. I wanted you.”

_Yuuri pictured a hunter carrying his prize pheasant on his back._ Victor laughed.

“You’re not far off Yuuri. For years, I was just so focused on my skating that I pushed my secondary gender aside. But...when you approached me last night, so unafraid, so full of life, even after the bad night you had in the competition, something just awakened inside me.” Victor spoke with a quiet passion, his hand clutching the blue blanket to his chest. “Then when we danced, you just seemed to create the music with your whole body. I just wanted to be close to you. I certainly wasn’t going to leave you to any of those other omegas, so unguarded. Celestino was asleep at the table and couldn’t even tell me your room number!”

_‘You were jealous?’_

“Victor...I want to kiss you.” The omega dragged the blanket over to Yuuri’s end of the couch and crawled into his lap facing him. He wrapped the blanket around them both. Yuuri’s arms snaked around the omega’s back and Victor bent down to capture the alpha’s lips in a kiss. The alpha deepened the kiss, licking into his omega’s warm, wet mouth. The scent of cinnamon and roses filled the blanket, making the omega almost feel dizzy. Yuuri began to pull at the bottom of the black cashmere sweater. Victor discarded it. The omega could feel heat pooling at Yuuri’s center, could feel the hardening of his length.

“Alpha…”

“Victor...I need to care for your wound. It’s important,” Yuuri shook his head a little to clear it. He had a raging erection. “Let’s go to the bed. Victor sat on his knees in the center of the bed and Yuuri kneeled behind him.

_‘Wait a minute’._ Victor moved back toward the couch and pulled on Yuuri’s team jacket, before returning to the bed. Victor sat in front of Yuuri on his knees. The team Japan jacket was draped low on the omega’s back, revealing his bonding mark. The muscles in his back, his perfect ass in those jeans, his hair practically glowing from the light from the window by the bed. 

One of Yuuri’s arms came around Victor’s chest. The other cupped the side of his face. Yuuri placed a soft kiss on the bonding mark and then licked at it with long strokes, his nose pressed softly in the omega’s silver hair, taking in his scent. Victor shivered with pleasure. He began to speak his alpha’s name again and again. 

_‘Who knew that wound care could be so...sexy…’_

Victor moaned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember comments and kudos. They bring me writing joy. 🥰❤️


	3.  Eyes Lit With A Passionate Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unexpected visitor comes in like a wrecking ball of reality.

_I love your lips when they’re wet with wine_

_And red with a wild desire;_

_I love your eyes when the lovelight lies_

_Lit with a passionate fire_

_Taken from, “I Love You” by Ella Wheeler Wilcox_

  
  
  


The mood in the room had turned somber. Yakov had come to the door as Victor lay in Yuuri’s arms. The pre-heat wound care had gotten rather more erotic than they had intended, before Yakov had arrived at the door. The alpha had held his mate to him, his hand around his omega’s hard length, as he licked and kissed the healing bonding mark on the back of Victor’s neck. 

When his lover fell into ecstasy in his arms, Yuuri heart nearly burst with the simple joy of it. He had done that. He had given his lover pleasure and release. It was all he wanted, to care for his omega. The smell of cinnamon and roses surrounded them. It was fresh and exotic and intoxicating at the same time. It defined them.

_‘I think that caring for your wound is good for my health too,’_ Yuuri breathed in Victor’s ear. Victor had purred and Yuuri held him a little closer.

Yuuri pulled on some clothes just out of view when the two Russians spoke in hushed tones at the door. Yakov handed Victor a small white paper bag. Yuuri swore that he had heard Victor hiss at the old man. All his protective instincts suddenly went on alert.

“Don’t test me Yakov, or we’re through. After all these years, I think I deserve a little time to find my happiness,” Victor said. His omega’s voice was shaking. Yuuri didn’t hear everything that Yakov had said, but he could see flashes of Victor’s memories that gave him glimpses of his relationship with Yakov. 

_Yakov sitting by Victor’s bed handing him a white paper bowl filling with hot soup. The old man, reaching out and ruffling the teen’s long, silver hair. Victor’s head bowed, as Yakov yelled at him behind the boards until he was practically purple. Yakov nodding toward a basket of puppies in the corner of a room._ Yuuri found it interesting that although Yakov must have been speaking Russian to Victor in the memories, Yuuri could understand everything. It wasn’t even so much like hearing the dialog as much as the alpha’s brain was interpreting the sentiment of each exchange.

The more Yuuri and Victor held each other, the more they touched, and the more they shared memories, the more aware of Victor’s thoughts and feelings the alpha seemed to be. Right now, Yuuri could feel himself becoming agitated by his lover’s tone of voice. He walked toward the end of the bed so he could monitor their exchange. Finally, the alpha couldn’t stand by anymore as he realized that Victor’s scent was growing more and more distressed. He walked up behind Victor, wrapped an arm around his waist possessively, and as politely as he could, asked Yakov to leave, a growl rumbling in his chest.

“You better watch yourself Katsuki. I haven’t decided whether or not to press charges against you.” Yakov met Yuuri’s gaze and then focused on the arm wrapped around the omega. A low growl was barely audible. The old man motioned toward the the bag in Victor’s hand. “If you care for him at all, you’ll command him to take the pills in that bag.” Yakov’s final words affected Victor. His posture, that had shown such confidence a moment earlier, seemed to falter. 

_‘Bastard…’_

The omega slumped slightly against him.

Now, the small, white pharmaceutical bag sat on the coffee table. The two skater’s sat on the opposite sides of the couch staring at it, like it was a bomb about to go off. Yuuri looked over at his mate. Victor had his knees pulled up and was hugging Yuuri’s pillow from off of the bed. 

_‘Is that our future...to take some pills and forget.’_

“Is it the morning after pill?” Yuuri asked softly.

Victor leaned forward and opened the bag. He pulled out what looked like a card with a blister pack of two pills in it. The omega stuffed it back into the bag and pushed it back onto the table. His hand went to his mouth and he thoughtfully began to chew on the knuckle of his index finger. 

He nodded.

_‘I have a chance to have a whole different life…We could be a family.’_

_‘I guess a simple command would take care of your mistake.’_ The thought was fleeting. It wasn’t angry or sarcastic...it was sad and resigned.

“Victor.” Yuuri was struck. The alpha glanced toward Victor, who was still lost in his thoughts.

_‘I would never command you to do something like that.’_ Yuuri couldn’t believe that Victor could think that about him. 

_‘What have I done to earn his trust I bonded him without consent…’_

Then he realized that he had been hanging back from Victor since Yakov had come to the door. Somehow, seeing Yakov was like a wrecking ball of reality crashing into their little den. In a few days they would leave this hotel room. Then what?

Victor’s thoughts were in turmoil. More and more anxious thoughts began to snowball in the omega’s mind. It was hard to tease them apart and make sense of them. Yuuri realized that he had to reach out, distract him.

“What are you thinking Victor? Why do you feel so far away?” Yuuri crawled across the couch and placed his hand on Victor’s cheek, turning his face toward him and away from the paper bag.

“Yakov said that the worst thing that could happen to me is to quit skating because I got pregnant,” Victor said softly.

_‘I want to be loved...and I want my decisions to be respected._ Victor thought. He looked at Yuuri, searching his face.

“Isn’t it strange that such a basic desire is so hard to say out loud?” Yuuri spoke thoughtfully. It bothered the alpha to see Victor so closed off, protecting himself from the contents of a white paper bag. Yuuri began to crawl across the couch. His hand gently turned Victor’s face to his own.

_‘Look Victoru! See how your hand fits so perfectly in mine.’ Yuuri’s tie was around his head, his pants...where were his pants anyway? ‘We’re perfect together,’ Yuuri looked up into cerulean eyes. ‘How are you so pretty?’ The omega’s eyes softened and the sweetest smile broke on Victor’s face, making the alpha gasp._

Victor tilted his head into Yuuri’s hand and closed his eyes briefly, savoring the memory from the banquet. He opened them and gave the alpha a wry smile.

“You passed out a few minutes after that,” Victor leaned forward into Yuuri’s arms.

“Yeah...sorry about that,” Yuuri sighed and pulled the omega into his arms.

“You know the probability of having a baby with me in heat is really high. What do you think of that? I mean...what happens next...with us?” Victor searched Yuuri’s face. Yuuri gently brought his forehead to Victor’s and closed his eyes. The smell of roses and cinnamon surrounded them. Yuuri began filling Victor’s mind with images.

_He saw a wriggly newborn getting a bath in a plastic tub on the floor. Yuuri was testing the water temperature of a hand held shower head and Victor knelt beside the little yellow tub, squeezing baby soap onto a washcloth._

_Victor saw a chubby little toddler sitting in a high chair eating noodles. The toddler had black hair that stuck up in places and beautiful blue eyes. He wore a lavender bib that read Daddy’s favorite._

_The toddler was now a little bigger, riding on Yuuri’s shoulders, an infant was securely and gently held to Victor’s chest in a sling._

Victor gasped at the image of them with two children, but why wouldn’t they have more children?

_The couple walked hand in hand down the street, attending what looked like an outdoor festival._ The feelings that accompanied the images made Victor’s chest feel tight. There was such affection and contentment in the images. Victor’s eyes were wet with tears when he opened them.

_‘Why don’t we live happily ever after?’_

“Where?” 

“We’ll figure it out together. Victor, you deserve more than a little happiness. You deserve every happiness.”

That sat together in silence for a long time. Yuuri held his mate as they reclined together on the couch. It was a needed pause. The exchange of their thoughts and feelings seemed to be every bit as important to their bonding as the physical part. At the same time, it was exhausting to suddenly hear and process another’s thoughts, to feel another’s reactions and feelings. Yuuri had a hard enough time managing his own feelings. He wished his parents hadn’t been betas. He didn’t know that bonding was so...life changing.

Victor’s beautiful white neck was inches away from the alpha’s face. Yuuri began to lazily lick at the bonding mark. The omega closed his eyes and savored the contact.

_‘What kind of ice cream do you like?’_

Yuuri smiled at Victor’s random question, _‘I really like mango sorbet. You?’_

_‘I might change my answer. I didn’t know mango sorbet was an option.’_ They both started to laugh, Victor laced his fingers into Yuuri’s.

_‘This is a deal breaker, even if you are my fated mate, dogs or cats?’_

_‘I had a poodle...named Vicchan. He was named after you,’_ Victor leaned forward away from Yuuri’s chest and looked into his warm brown eyes. He was smiling shyly, his ears slightly pink.

“Seriously?” 

Yuuri reached over to the coffee table and grabbed his phone. He unlocked it and opened up his photos. 

“Here. See for yourself. Vicchan is like a nickname for Victor,” Yuuri handed Victor his phone.

“Did you have the case made? It’s really cute,” Victor turned the phone over his hand. It was blue and covered in poodles.

“No, actually a fan from Hatsetsu hand painted it for me. I’ve had it for a while now.”

_‘Oh. The phone locked again.’_ Victor thought.

_‘122592,’_ the thought popped into Yuuri’s mind before he even realized it.

Victor looked back at Yuuri, “Amazing. Your code is my birthday.”

_‘That will be easy to remember.’_

_“Uhhh...I was always told not to use my own birthday…”_

Victor leaned back again and together they looked at pictures. Flashes of memories made the pictures come alive in Victor’s mind. _Yuuri was carrying Vicchan in one arm, as he walked along the beach because the little pup had gotten tired of walking. Vicchan dragging one of Yuuri’s socks across his floor and almost out of his room. Vicchan sleeping on Yuuri’s hip and slipping off onto the bed without even waking up._

_‘Vicchan passed away a few days ago. I didn’t take it very well.’_

_“I’m sorry Yuuri. I really am.”_

Yuuri shrugged. He looked away from the phone and Victor, trying not to start crying.

_Victor saw flashes of Yuuri talking with his sister on the phone, crying alone in the shower of their hotel, taking deep breaths before entering the ice..._

_‘My mind isn’t strong Victor. Sometimes…instead of controlling my emotions, they control me.’_

“Crying when you lose a loved one isn’t weakness,” Victor turned to his side and nestled into his mate’s chest. 

“Victor, what did you mean by fated mates? You spoke like it was a real thing,” Yuuri leaned back into the couch and began to thoughtlessly skate his fingers up and down his lover’s back.

“Oh, it’s real. My fathers are a fated pair. Not every couple can hear each other’s thoughts like we can Yuuri. It’s not like the movies though. Something about a special kind of biological compatibility and it’s rare - like finding a perfect bone marrow match rare.” 

The shadows became long in the late afternoon and the edges of the clouds were ablaze with red and pink light. Yuuri perched himself at the end of the couch, his chin resting on his forearm on the rolled arm, watching his mate build their nest. The omega was deep in thought, humming to himself, as he carefully placed blankets and clothing in the nest. The alpha thought it was interesting how many random memories and thoughts that Victor had while he was working on a task. Yuuri saw flashes of skating choreography, heard the omega’s lament over whether Makkachin had enough dental treats to last through his heat, and caught a glimpse of a really good turkey, avocado sandwich that Victor had before he left. 

“Are you hungry?”

_‘We should order food while we still feel up to it, I suppose. I want cheese blintzes with fruit...and milk.’_

A flash of memory showed a man with silver hair placing a plate of blintzes in front of a much younger Victor. The feeling was warm and comforting.

_‘Is that your dad?’_ Yuuri smiled. Victor nodded and kept rolling a pink fleece blanket into a tube.

Yuuri called in the order for their food and then placed his phone on the table with a big stretch. When the blintzes arrived, Yuuri was glad to see his mate nearly clean his plate. The alpha observed that when the omega was happy and feeling content, he had much more of an appetite. Victor eventually wandered back over to the nest, climbing up on the bed, he added a few final touches. Yuuri quickly finished his own meal, turning to see Victor standing before their nest, hands on his hips, considering his work.

The alpha walked up behind the omega and gently threaded one arm around his waist. Victor’s scent of roses was stronger and reminded him of a garden after a summer rain. The alpha’s eyes closed, savoring the scent. He hooked his finger in the top of Victor’s black cashmere sweater and pulled it down to nuzzle the white skin beside the perfect bond mark. Yuuri could hear his mate’s intake of breath as Victor’s hand came up in a caress of Yuuri’s arm. 

The omega began to purr with contentment. The feel of the rumbly purr coming from Victor’s back gave Yuuri such a pleasant, light feeling. A smile lit up his features.

‘It’s ready…’ Victor thought, his mouth hanging open slightly, his face flushed with the beginnings of desire. Yuuri pulled Victor’s sweater off and carefully laid it on the bed. 

“Kneel down and lean forward on the bed,” Yuuri maneuvered the omega as he spoke softly in his ear. Yuuri knew from the omega’s scent and the flush of his skin, that once they were in that nest, they weren’t coming out. Victor could see the image in his head of what Yuuri wanted him to do in mind. He paused, entertaining the image for a moment, and shivered. The omega knelt, leaning against the bed, and restings his cheek on the back of his folded hands. Yuuri pressed his body against the omega, held him firmly, and nuzzled the back of his neck, before cleaning the bonding mark, licking the wound in long strokes. 

“Yuuri…” Victor moaned and began to grip the bedding with his right hand, thoroughly enjoying the gently touches and the closeness. Yuuri reached out and laced their fingers together.

They were out of time. Yuuri noticed his vision was hazy around the edges. Every sensation seemed to be amplified, like a buzz on his skin. It was Victor’s scent. It had changed somehow. There was a more exotic note to Victor’s scent that encouraged Yuuri to protect and satisfy his omega.

Victor turned his face to the side. His pupils were blown wide. His face flushed. The omega cried out for his mate.

“Yuuri. I need you…”


	4. Yours, Body and Soul

_“And say with a fervor born of the South_

_That your body and soul are mine.”_

_I Love You by Ella Wheeler Wilcox_

  
  
  


Yuuri’s nose rested behind Victor’s ear as they moved together as one. His eyes were closed as he concentrated on his omega’s breathing. Their love making had developed a rhythm as the evening went on. The alpha inhaled the mingling of their scents and smiled. Their scents of cinnamon and roses combined with the scent of their mating. It was warm and exotic and made the alpha close his eyes and drink it in. Yuuri usually focused on sensations during sex. The scents, the sounds, the heat...the tingling...the building desire and the sweat of their movement and passion. His orgasm would build and become an explosion that made him see shooting stars. Victor, it seemed, liked to focus on feelings and a little bit of fantasy. 

In his thoughts, Yuuri could see them as a couple, dancing and caressing each other on what looked like a floor made of clouds. At first, in the vision, Yuuri was wearing no shirt, just a pair of suit pants and some highly polished shoes. The sky was set ablaze with the pink and orange light of sunset, that lit the edges of the clouds. Soon, the vision changed and they lay together, entwined on a bed made of clouds. It was warm and soft and each caress left a trail of light on the other’s body. As the omega’s orgasm began to build, Yuuri felt surrounded by a feeling of sweet affection and erotic desire. It radiated from them in a glow. Yuuri felt present in Victor’s fantasy, like he was truly in another place. He could feel, see, and even hear music welling up around them. Yuuri used the fantasy as a guide to his lover’s pleasure, caressing and moving as the vision instructed. Victor moaned and shuddered under his touches, encouraging the alpha.

_‘Yes...my Yuuri...please…’_

It was bizarre to be a part of his lover’s fantasy, if Yuuri was honest. He had never experienced anything like this. Yet it made Yuuri feel giddy. It was beautiful and joyful. 

Victor was close and Yuuri continued to embrace his lover’s fantasy, moving his hips faster until, in the vision, light filled their bodies and the couple burst skyward into release.

“Yuuri!” Victor cried out. Yuuri kissed the bond mark on Victor’s neck and laced his arm around the front of his lover’s chest, pulling him closer, as they lay on the bed tied together with Yuuri’s knot.

“Victor...that was amazing,” Yuuri was grinning as he spoke softly in Victor’s ear, nuzzling the back of his neck. “Your fantasy life is very...creative.”

“...I read a lot,” Victor said and they laughed silently for a few seconds.

_‘You’re so much more present than I thought you would be…’_ Yuuri thought.

_‘Not like a real heat.’_

_‘Is this how it always is?’_

_‘No...I don’t know.’_

Uncertainty sprung forth in the omega’s mind. Victor knew there was a reason, but the thought was just out of his reach.

“Hey, it’s alright love,” Yuuri kissed Victor’s bonding mark and nuzzled the back of his neck. “I have you.”

‘I love you…’

_‘I love you too.’_

Victor relaxed, pushed back against his alpha’s knot, and shivered. Even now, he still clung to his worries. They lurked in a dark place in the back of his mind. Yakov’s words fleeted in that dark corner. Victor was practical. He wanted a happily ever after, but would this new love be enough? Victor was surprised how Yuuri just joined his fantasy, used the vision for Victor’s pleasure. They were dreaming the same dream...like they were one person, his fated mate. It was all a little overwhelming. He remembered the day that his Papa had tried to explain what it meant to have a fated mate. Victor wondered why they were so different from his friend’s parents. They embarrassed him when he was a young teen. His parents were always touching each other and in each other’s space. They were affectionate. When Victor was an adult, he knew that he longed for what they had, but every time he tried to go out on a date, it was a disaster. He thought himself broken somehow, unable to connect with another soul.

But now, no words could have explained the feelings that Victor was having. _‘He joined my dream…’_ Tears fell unbidden from the omega’s eyes. Victor was so moved.

_‘My god, Yuuri, you take my breath away…’_ Victor could feel a deep rumbling in his alpha’s body in reply.

Yuuri’s hands began to quietly explore every part of his lover’s body that he could reach. A moan escaped Victor’s lips, as he pushed back against him again. The alpha slowly began to stroke his omega off, mouthing his neck.

_‘God, yes.’_

Yuuri didn’t fully understand what had changed in his mind over the course of two days. Every movement of his hand, every soft touch, every thought that he had was focused on his omega. All that mattered in the world was his omega’s pleasure, his omega’s happiness. It was like a hunger or a thirst that he could barely quench. 

_‘Yuuri!,’_ Victor shivered again in his release. Yuuri’s own orgasm took him by surprise and he gasped and held his omega tighter. Afterward, they were boneless and sated...for now.

<<>>

_“Papa...don’t leave. I’m hot. I don’t like this,” Victor caught his reflexion in the mirror. The young teen’s hair was long, cascading down his shoulders. A sheen of perspiration shown on the young man’s face. He was flushed. He felt strange, like he wanted to crawl out of his skin._

_“I know that it’s hard Vitya. But, it is just a part of growing up. I’ll come back later, okay. I just need a few hours of sleep.” An older man, with blonde hair had a tragic expression._

_“Don’t leave me alone!”_

_Victor took up the scissors. Something had to help with the heat. Something had to make it stop. Long locks of silver hair fell to the floor._

Yuuri jolted awake.

“Victor,” Yuuri whispered. The omega was nestled against his chest.

_‘I’m sorry…’_

_‘You did nothing wrong. What was that?’_

_‘That...was my first heat.’_

Yuuri remembered reading an article in a magazine about Victor cutting his hair to give himself a more mature look.

_‘I won’t leave you alone...I’ll never leave you,’_ Yuuri began to trace his fingers up and down Victor’s arm. The omega closed his eyes.

<<>>

Victor’s eyes blinked open. Yuuri was cleaning his body with a warm washcloth.

“Would you rather have a shower Vitenka, or would you rather stay in our nest?” Yuuri asked, his voice was soothing. Yuuri had heard the endearment in Victor’s mind. It just...slipped out.

_‘Nest.’_

Yuuri smiled, “Okay, Love.”

The next snatch of awareness that Victor had was Yuuri encouraging him to drink a clear chicken broth. It was delicious. Victor finished the broth and sat like a sleepy child, staring straight ahead.

_‘I think that you are coming out of the heat, my love…’_ Yuuri gathered the omega in his arms and pulled a blanket over them both. He was reclining against a pile of pillows, pulled from the remains of their nest. Yuuri had been pulling dirty linens and pillows into a laundry bag, trying to keep his mate clean, dry, and comfortable. 

Victor started and sat up, his eyes roving over the remains of their nest. He leaned forward and grasped Yuuri’s team Japan jacket, pulling it on.

Yuuri smiled. Victor snuggled into him again and closed his eyes. He purred.

Yuuri closed his eyes and held his omega close. His mind drifted to last night. Their lovemaking had become sweet, unhurried. Yuuri had learned what Victor liked, what he needed. Their movements together seemed like a piece of music, a melody and harmony welling up within them and spilling over with sweet emotion. Yuuri wondered, would it always be like this? What did he do to deserve such a beautiful mate?

_‘Mine...my fated one...my love.’_

_‘Yuuri, how long has it been?’_

“Two days,” Yuuri said softly into Victor’s hair. His hand ran up and down Victor’s arm in soothing motions. The omega was sore, but relaxed.

“Victor...how did your parents do anything?” Yuuri could see snatches of Victor’s thoughts, though he didn’t understand everything that he was seeing. Victor teased his parents for the PDA when he was young. But watching them...Yuuri wanted that with Victor. The silver haired man would hug the shorter blonde haired man from behind. His eyes would close and the silver haired man would nuzzle the scent gland behind his mate’s left ear. It was tender and intimate and made the alpha shiver.

“What do you mean?” Victor asked. But in his mind’s eye, he knew exactly what Yuuri meant, as flashes of their love making came into his thoughts. Victor chuckled, “There are other needs in life that need to be met, I suppose.”

“I guess that’s true,” Yuuri half whined and then sighed. “I’m starving. What if we order food and then shower?”

Yuuri placed an order for food. It was mid-afternoon, but Victor wanted breakfast, toast, tea with jam, eggs, fruit, things that would be easy on his stomach. Yuuri ordered pasta. He was starving and needed the calories.

The shower felt amazing. Victor leaned against the cool marble tile as Yuuri washed him from head to toe. Victor smiled sleepily as Yuuri laid kisses on his shoulder, his back, and even his finger tips. This little bit of care meant a lot to Victor. 

_‘I feel wanted...cherished,’_ Victor sighed.

“I want you to feel cherished Vitenka,” Yuuri said softly. Yuuri had put all of their clothes in a laundry service while Victor had slept after the first day of his heat. Victor was relieved to be able to wear clean clothes, all of them washed in omega safe soap.

When the food came, the couple snuggled up on the couch. Victor had grabbed Yuuri’s jacket and laid it across his lap, like a security blanket. The omega picked at his toast at first, but then his hunger kicked in. Yuuri was enjoying his pasta that was covered in a brown mushroom gravy. It was delicious. Victor reached over and tried a bit of the pasta with his fork.

“Mmmm, that’s really good,” Victor said a little shyly. Yuuri pushed some of his pasta onto Victor’s plate.

“Have some Love. You need the nutrition,” Yuuri smiled, happy to see his omega’s appetite had picked up.

Yuuri sat and watched Victor eat. His smile faded as the weight of his thoughts distracted him.

“I will coach you Yuuri. I think that I would be a good coach,” Victor said nonchalantly. 

“Huh?” Yuuri was brought back to himself by Victor’s words.

“Where should we live though? Do you go to school in Detroit?” Victor speared a mushroom and popped it into his mouth.

“Uh, no. My classes are online from a school in Japan, actually. I can live anywhere,” Yuuri spoke in a rush. Victor was nodding his head, as he took another bite of eggs, which he pushed through the brown gravy. Yuuri smiled at his hungry omega.

“What if we trained in my hometown for now...in case there is a baby,” Yuuri looked at his hands for a moment nervously, but then raised his eyes to Victor’s. Yuuri had looked up a lot of information about omega bonding and bonding heats. It wasn’t a certainty, but some of the characteristics of Victor’s heat indicated pregnancy. The presence of his mind for a lot of the heat, the short duration, even his appetite, indicated what is known as a breakthrough heat. The hormones of the bonding trigger a heat, but the implantation of an embryo shuts everything down quickly.

_‘Breakthrough heat…’_ Victor stared at the alpha. The fork dropped from his hand and clattered on the plate.

“Listen, Victor. It will be okay. I have a lot of family in Hatsetsu. We’ll have a lot of support. I would be honored to have you as my coach. I know that we could be an amazing team. Yuuri reached out and took Victor’s hand. Tears sparkled in the omega’s eyes. “How many times have you shot into space after making love? We’re already a great team aren’t we?” Yuuri reached up and wiped away a tear before it could fall.

Victor laughed and wiped his eyes.

“I told Yakov that this was my last year, that I wanted to retire,” Victor picked up the fork again. He wasn’t happy. But, I don’t feel… the joy that I used to feel when I skate anymore. Yuuri, I know that I can help you win the next Grand Prix Final.”

“Right now I’m worried about Nationals,” Yuuri scoffed. “Victor, will you come to Hatsetsu with me?”

“I don’t think I could ever part from you.”

Victor leaned over his plate and kissed his alpha softly on the lips.

<<>>

Victor was curled up into a ball in the middle of the remains of their nest. Yuuri was restless. He was used to a lot of physical activity. Some people meditated, some people made lists, whenever Yuuri had a lot on his mind, he thought through it by moving his body. He began with light stretches and moved on to push-ups, sit-ups, burpees, lunges. He moved until his muscles burned and a light sheen of perspiration covered his skin. He had a lot of calls he had to make today. He needed to call the embassy and get his Vitenka a visa. Yuuri sighed. He needed to call his mom...probably already should have called her. Yuuri picked up his phone and checked the alerts.

There was a loud pounding at the door. Victor started and sat up in the middle of their nest, still wearing Yuuri’s team Japan jacket.

“Coming,” Yuuri called. When Yuuri opened the door, he saw two policemen, with Yakov behind him. “Yakov, what’s going on?”

“Are you Yuuri Katsuki?” The man spoke in heavily accented English.

“Yes, can I help you, officer?” Yuuri tried to remain calm, but he didn’t like this alpha so close to his mate just after his heat.

“You are under arrest for the non consensual bonding of an omega,” the officer said evenly.

“He’s my mate You can’t do this. Yakov, stop this,” Victor cried out from the remains of their nest as he scrambled from the bed.

“Are you Victor Nikifovov, the omega in question?” The other officer spoke to him in Russian. “An omega can’t give consent within 48 hours of a heat. It is for your own protection.”

Yuuri couldn’t believe this was happening.

“Yakov, don’t do this. Yuuri is my fated mate. You can’t separate us,” Victor tried to step in front of Yuuri. The officer looked a little uncomfortable at Victor’s words and spoke to Yakov in Russian.

There were laws that protected a fated pair.

“Fated pair? Bullshit,” Yakov said. “Arrest him.” 

The officer roughly grabbed Yuuri’s arm, pushing Victor out of the way. Off balance, Victor dropped to the floor.

“Stop,” Yuuri squatted down to check on his mate. “Listen to me Vitenka. We haven’t done anything wrong. Take my phone, call my family and the Japanese embassy. Call Celestino. I’m not leaving you and everything will be alright.” Yuuri placed a chaste kiss on his lips and helped him to his feet, pressing the phone into his hand. In his thoughts, Yuuri was picturing the numbers that he wanted Victor to call, willing him to understand.

“Yakov, please don’t do this,” Victor pleaded as the officer placed cuffs on Yuuri’s hands.

_‘I’m not leaving you Vitenka. I love you. Make the phone calls.’_

Yakov spied the white bag on the coffee table. “Vitya, I’m just trying to keep you from ruining your life.” The old man shook his head as he walked toward the elevator.

Victor was dumbstruck for a moment. 

“Vitenka, look at me,” Yuuri spoke softly. Victor looked up into his alpha’s face.

_‘I will never leave you. You are mine.’_ The officers began to move Yuuri out the door. Victor put his hand on Yuuri’s shoulder and pulled him back, giving him another kiss, not so chaste this time. Victor licked a kiss into his lover's mouth. A fire was kindled in his eyes.

_‘I will fight for us, my Yuuri. You are mine.’_

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long break. I had a huge project at work, that is now complete. I intend to finish a lot of my works in the next couple of weeks. Let me know you haven't forgotten me! Comments keep me excited to write.


	5. Fated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victor isn't going to take Yuuri being ripped away from him lying down. He assembles his  
> team to make things right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You might want your fuzzy blanket for this chapter...

**“...your body and soul are mine.” Taken from** **_I Love You_ ** **, by Ella Wheeler Wilcox**

  
  


The heavy hotel door automatically shut with a loud thunk. Victor flinched. The sound was jarring. It sounded so final. Victor stared at the door. He reached out and laid his palm on the cool surface. Just a moment later, however, Yuuri’s thoughts reached him.

_‘Vitenka, I haven’t left you. No door can separate us.’_

_‘Yuuri…’_

Victor drew in a breath. The omega’s mind had drifted briefly toward a dark place, but Yuuri’s thoughts were an anchor that had caught in the swift current, holding him fast.

The omega clutched at his chest. He could feel his lover moving away from him, _‘It’s too soon.’_ His chest began to ache. 

_‘Call the numbers my love…’_

Victor crossed the room and opened his recent calls. He tapped the fourth number and put the phone to his ear.

“Hello?” Victor queried. He could hear fumbling on the other side.

“Vitya....it’s so early. Are you okay?” A sleepy voice replied.

“Dad, I...uh...I found my fated mate,” the omega spoke tentatively, but with a quiet passion. Victor’s plan included calling members of the Japanese media. He didn’t want his fathers to hear about his relationship with Yuuri over social media or in the news. Oh, and Victor planned on being in the news. Omega rights in Russia were an issue that frequently came up in the news media around the world. Let’s face it, some of it was because other countries wanted to show off how “progressive” they had become, when just a few years ago they were just as bad or in some ways worse. It didn’t matter though. Victor would gladly use the media to save this chance that he had to be a family with Yuuri and...their baby.

The realization struck Victor that there was definitely going to be a baby. He never had his heat for such a short time and as he thought the word “baby”, he felt a tingle that started at his bond and moved down his spine. Of course, he couldn’t know for certain this early...technically. It was just a feeling. The omega wondered if Yuuri knew it too. He was pretty sure he did. Yuuri was thinking of him. It had become a mantra of thought from his beloved. 

_'It will be okay. This is just temporary. We will be together. I love you.'_

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone and Victor thought he could hear his Papa mumbling something in the background.

“I’ll put you on speaker. Tell us…” 

Victor told his dads his story, including his feeling that he was probably pregnant. Victor heard a gasp from the other end of the phone when he told them how Yakov had shown up with a prescription for the abortion pill. He ended his story with, “I need him. How can we help him?”

His Papa spoke first, “You’ll need proof of your bond. You are still in Sochi, I assume?”

“Yes.”

“You need an MRI of your brain. A fated bond lights up the communication centers of the brain in a very unique way. I’ll need to make some phone calls, but I can probably get my friend who is a judge to order it. That way we can get it done today. Listen, start making those calls. If they put him in one of those cells lined with lead, your bond will be affected,” his father sighed. “Contacting the media right away, might avoid that. We need the media narrative to focus on the fact that you are fated mates not that you were bonded.”

Victor knew what his Papa was talking about. Domestic violence was a terrible thing. A fated bond was evolution’s way of creating a perfect unity in the pack. It protected the family and allowed for amazing efficiency in hunting and in the bonding process. But, it was no longer needed today. Alphas and omegas didn’t fight daily for survival. Fated mates were mostly consigned to legend and romance movies.

Unfortunately, being fated mates didn’t mean that you had a perfect relationship. Being bound could be a blessing or a curse. The bond could also cause mental problems for people that were susceptible. Dealing with another person’s addictions, depression, or bi-polar disorder was a possible consequence of bonding to a fated mate. Victor thought about how those problems were never explored in the romance movies.

“We’ll be there soon.” 

Victor heard the words that his father said. They snapped him out of his musings, 

“Why?”

“If they put him in one of those rooms...let’s just say, you will not feel well,” his Papa sighed.

That worried Victor. Making sure that their bond was weakened was probably why Yakov had done this and followed them to the police station. Already, Victor noticed that he could no longer hear complete thoughts from Yuuri. He felt impressions of thoughts...feelings.

“I...I need to make some more calls while I still can,” a feeling of dread fell heavy in the pit of his stomach. 

“Your Dada has already booked a flight. We should be there in about 4 hours. I will set everything up from the plane. We better go or we won’t make the flight,” Ian Nikiforov said. Victor could hear movement and rustling as he imagined his Papa shoving clothes into a garment bag. The omega had smiled when he had said Dada, just the way that he had said it when he, himself, was a boy...more like Dad-uh. He knew that it was the right thing to call his dads first.

“Thank you,” Victor said simply. Two words never said so much. 

_‘Thank you for accepting my choice. Thank you for taking my side. Thank you for booking a plane to be with me before you were even off the phone. Thank you for forgiving me for not calling for 6 months. Why hadn’t I called? Because, I was jealous of their closeness. Because I was lonely and felt like I would never have a relationship like that in my life. I felt like I was...broken.’_

“Always, Vitya...we’ll be there soon.” Victor ended the call.

Victor called Marooka next. The japanese man was very surprised to hear from him. When Victor told him that he wanted to give him the exclusive story about how Yuuri Katsuki had found his fated mate, the professional control that Marooka tried to maintain just barely held. Victor smiled. He could tell that Marooka was a fan of Yuuri Katsuki.

“Mr. Marooka, Yuuri Katsuki is completely innocent. I was not in heat before we were bonded, so even the Russian omega laws were not violated. But, the fact that we are fated mates moves this matter to international laws, which must take precedence.”

“Let’s set up a skype interview for an hour from now. We need to get this out there right away,” Marooka said thoughtfully. “I’d like to call a couple of consultants. Also, the JSF has to be informed. We’ll fix this Mr. Nikiforov. Don’t worry about him.”

An hour later, Victor had called Phichit, Celestino, and Yuuri’s family. Yuuri’s mother had answered the phone, but quickly handed it to his sister Mari, who spoke the best English. Mari had agreed to contact the JSF. From the young woman’s tone, Victor knew that she was the right person for the job. He had a feeling that she didn’t take any shit.

Victor opened his laptop after dressing up in his Team Russia gear and fixing his hair. He used concealer to cover up the love bite marks that Yuuri had left. He wanted to look as wholesome as one could, coming out of a two day session of round the clock lovemaking. Victor propped the small hotel notepad on the laptop, so he could refer to his notes as he spoke without having to look down.

Victor received the notification of Marooka’s call. He took a deep breath and answered.

  
  


<<>>

“You should have known better than to piss off Yakov Feltsman. The man is legendary for his bad moods,” the young russian policeman pulled out a folder and opened it up on his desk. It was full of forms. He sighed looking at them, “In Russia, we have a form for everything.” 

Yuuri’s head was bowed. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on sending calming thoughts to his mate. He had absolutely no clue if Victor could hear them, feel them. He hoped that he did. He thought that he could still feel his mate’s presence in his mind, but it wasn’t formed thoughts, more like feelings. He felt an urgency, then nostalgia, then a feeling of relief. It was his Victor. It had to be. Across the room, he could hear Yakov talking to another officer. Yuuri thought about having someone like Yakov for a coach. 

‘I would have ulcers,’ he decided with a shudder. After answering a lot of questions and filling in what seemed like a mountain of paperwork, Yuuri was left alone in the chair for a long time. The young alpha looked up when he heard Yakov’s raised voice. Yakov was pointing at him. Yuuri closed his eyes and tried to calm down. He didn’t want Victor to feel his fear. He didn’t know what they were saying, couldn’t read any of the signs on the wall, couldn’t even read what the officer was writing on the forms. It was so frustrating to be in this place and not know for certain what was going on. The only thing that he knew was that it was not good.

After a few more minutes, the young officer came over and handed him a bottle of water.

“Here. Drink.”

“Thanks,” Yuuri replied softly. He couldn’t open it because his hands were zip tied together. He looked up at the officer with a rather pitiful expression.

“Oh, sorry,” the officer took back the bottle and opened it. Yuuri reached forward again and took the bottle, taking a long draw of the cold liquid.

“I have a fated mate,” the young man leaned forward and said softly, with a wink. “I am trying to keep you out here as long as I can...and out of abuse unit. It...uh...it is bad for omega...for bond,” he struggled to convey his meaning. He always told people that he spoke good policeman English. He could give amazing directions, get you to stop and freeze, but he couldn’t talk philosophy with you. Yuuri stared up at him as he spoke.

“Thank you,” Yuuri said softly. The young man replied with a quick nod and a grunt.

Two hours later, the young officer had done all the stalling he could think of and Yuuri was escorted into a large room. There were bunk beds lining the wall and a television with chairs in front of it. The second the door closed behind him, the alpha sank to his knees, clutching his chest. What was this feeling? Yuuri felt like he couldn’t breathe, like everything that was good in his life was suddenly ripped away from him. He remembered the officer’s words…”bad for omega, for bond.” This is what he meant. 

His mind cried out for his mate.

<<>>

Victor thought that the interview was going very well. Dr. Nakamura was the expert that Marooka had convinced to join in on the interview. The doctor had a pleasingly deep voice and was soft spoken. He paused after the omega’s responses and asked Victor thoughtful questions. The interview was not live. Marooka had explained to Victor that he wanted to guard the couple’s privacy as much as possible. Victor liked the reporter. Yuuri was lucky to have someone on his side in his home country. 

Reporters in Russia seemed to circle around Victor like vultures, ready for him to show them any sign of weakness. They loved him when he won, but still always added the words “for an omega”, like putting on his pants in the morning was some kind of miracle because of his secondary gender. God, it was infuriating.

“You say that you had no signs of pre-heat the day of the banquet?” Dr. Nakamura confirmed. “Do you have any evidence, any test results perhaps?” The older gentleman stroked his chin.

“I do actually! Victor picked up his phone. “Athletes are tested for hormones each day of a competition for the sake of safety. My pheromone levels were only a three, which is normal for me.” The test results were on a phone app, which simplified notifications during large competitions. Anything over a seven would have disqualified an omega for competition. Alphas had similar guidelines, but Victor didn’t know what they were.

Marooka spoke up. “Is it dated Mr. Nikiforov? Can you screenshot that for me and send it?”

“Of course,” Victor took a screenshot of his results for each day of the competition and sent them to Marooka via text. The shots were rather perfect. The name of the competition was listed and they were dated, in addition to the results.

“Mr. Nikiforov, is there anything else that you want to say?” Marooka concluded.

“Yes. I’ve been in the skating world since I was only seven years old. I’ve met skaters from all over the world. Not only is Yuuri Katsuki my soulmate, my fated love, I’ve never in my life met anyone as kind...I…” 

Victor turned suddenly pale. His hand came up and covered his face, rubbing his fingertips back and forth over his forehead. 

“Sorry...I feel ill...forgive…” Victor slumped to his side.

Dr. Nakamura stood up in alarm, “Marooka, he needs an ambulance...if their bond is disrupted this early…”

The last thing that Victor remembered was Marooka’s face. The reporter looked frantic. Everything darkened.

‘Yuuri, my love…’ the omega cried out.

Victor heard nothing in reply...felt nothing...like a switch had flipped.

  
  
  
  
  


  
  



	6. Forever Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Enjoy!

_“Clasp me close in your warm young arms, While the pale stars shine above, And we’ll live our whole young lives away In the joys of a living love.”_

**I Love You, by Ella Wheeler Wilcox**

  
  


Yakov walked away from the scene, down the hall to the elevator. He couldn’t bear to witness the distress on Vitya’s face. It made the older man’s insides clench. If he had stayed, he would have lost his resolve. The older man had always had a soft spot for Vitya. He thought back to a time when Victor was first struggling to deal with his omega gender. The first year, the young man’s heat cycles were irregular and seemingly constant, like his omega body was trying to tell every alpha that he was available to claim. To hide his condition from the tabloids, Yakov had the idea to cast the omega’s foot and claim that he had severe tendonitis. 

Omegas were often overlooked by sponsors, dismissed as breeding stock for the next generation of athletes once they came into their heat. Vitya’s potential would not be thrown away - not if Yakov had anything to say about it. It was a convenient ruse, to fool the press and sponsors until his estrus became stable. It was a lonely time for Victor, who had to remain isolated and out of the public eye. The omega’s sweet, slightly flowery scent and the flush of his cheeks, would immediately let any alpha know that Victor Nikiforov’s problem was not tendonitis.

Trying to raise the boy's spirits, Yakov took him to the home of his friend, another beta, to play with a new litter of poodle puppies. Yakov hadn’t seen Vitya smile so much in months. Of course, the young skater walked out with a new friend in his arms.

Yakov mashed the button of the elevator. It was for the best. Victor would see that...as soon as the alpha’s mind was cut off from his. When his mind was his own, when he wasn’t at the mercy of his own hormones and the influence of the alpha, he would realize that this was just a temporary thing. Yakov would be there to pick up the pieces...like he always had been for his omega skaters.

Yakov sat in his car and watched Yuuri Katsuki being led out of the hotel by the two officers. Raindrops coursed down the windshield as his mind drifted into the past.

Katia had just turned 18 when she had been taken by the alpha skater, an American, so many years ago now. She wanted to defect, they had said. The American officials wouldn’t even allow him to see her. But, they were in Russia this time, with Russian laws on his side. Katia had years of skating ahead of her, a chance for Olympic gold, but instead the alpha immediately got her pregnant. He pitied the poor omega, remembered her gazing longingly at the ice three years later, a toddler perched on her lap, obviously pregnant, watching the American alpha win an Olympic silver for his country. It could have been her. It should have been her. Her medal would have been gold.

The trip to the police station was infuriating. Processing the Japanese alpha into the abuse unity seemed to take forever. Yakov grew impatient and began to yell at the officers, who seemed to just be standing around while the alpha sat by himself at the desk. Vitya would come to his senses when he was free of Katsuki’s influence. Yakov was sure of it.

“Explain to me why he isn’t sitting in a cell?” Yakov yelled.

“These things take time sir. We have to follow all the proper procedures.”

“Is drinking coffee across the room part of the booking process?” The beta countered. Yakov’s brain practically exploded when one of the officers stifled a laugh.

“Mr. Feltsman, what if Mr. Katsuki really is Mr. Nikiforov’s fated mate? Aren’t you concerned about your skater’s wellbeing?” Officer Volkov spoke as he walked up behind the laughing man and poured himself a cup of coffee.

“Who are you to talk to me about the wellbeing of my skater? I know everything about Victor Nikiforov, even how many teeth he has in his head,” Feltsman replied. “I’ve seen too many omegas dominated by this shitty alpha mind control. Why else would a five time world champion suddenly shack up with some second rate foreign skater?” The older man motioned toward Yuuri.

“Blocking the bond of a fated mate is bad for the health of the omega, he could go into a drop” Volkov said before taking a sip of the black coffee.

“Officer, you read too many romance novels,” Feltsman said evenly. The young man lowered his coffee mug and just stared at the older man in disbelief.

For a moment, Volkov looked like he was about to speak, opening his mouth. He thought better of it. He wouldn't change this beta's mind and Yakov Feltsman was a powerful man. Feltsman’s father had a hand in drafting the omega laws after the fall of the Soviet Union. He wasn’t sure if Feltsman was willfully ignorant about the bonding of alphas and omegas or if he was just a heartless bastard who cared for nothing but gold medals. 

Alphas and omegas were a small minority of the overall population. While communist Russia was forged by the strong leadership of elite alphas, both were now living in a new Russia, forged by the beta majority. The world of Figure Skating, however, had a high percentage of alphas and omegas because of the undeniable athleticism of the alpha and the grace and artistry of the omega. 

Resigned, Officer Volkov closed his mouth and grabbed a bottle of water for the man sitting, head down across the room. He would encourage Yuuri Katsuki to take his time drinking the bottle of water. Hell, he would order him some fucking Japanese delivery for lunch before he put him in that awful cell. He prayed that would be enough time for the JSF to get their heads out of their asses and rescue the alpha skater. 

Volkov thought about the one time that he had stepped fully into the abuse unit. A mentally ill alpha male was trying to hang himself with a sheet from the top of one of the bunk beds. Volkov ran into the room and tried to lift the man’s twitching body, when he suddenly began to feel like someone had punched him in the gut. He broke out in a cold sweat as every feeling of calm and well being drained away from him. He began to shake. He couldn’t feel the presence of his precious Lydia, his love, his anchor. It took an enormous effort to stand, to keep the pressure off of the prisoner’s neck so that he would survive. 

He focused on his precious mate now, the way she had run her fingers into his hair and kissed him goodbye that very morning, dragging off his bottom lip as if to prolong their kiss...

Volkov closed his eyes and shook his head to clear the memory.

“Here...drink,” Volkov said, in his best English.

  
  


<<>>

Morooka sat at his desk in the deserted office. He clicked around on his laptop and watched the live video coming from the front of the hospital where Victor and Yuuri were staying, appreciating what he had wrought with his skillfully edited video. The narrative of fated mates, torn apart by a country’s misapplied arcane laws, was top news around the globe. Yuuri never should have been held. Within hours of Yuuri’s arrest, the ISF verified Victor’s normal pheromone test results the morning of the banquet and it was beyond a doubt that he was not in heat before his bonding. The fact that Victor went into a drop on camera ignited outrage and passion in the viewing public. The vigil began outside the hospital in Sochi almost immediately after Victor arrived. Fated couples, skating fans, and romantics from around the region made the pilgrimage to Sochi to support Victor and Yuuri. Poodle plushies, notes, and flowers accumulated around the brick wall surrounding the hospital. It had been twenty four hours and Victor, while stable, had still not completely emerged from his drop. As the news station moved on to other stories, the reporter leaned back in his office chair. Morooka sighed and laced his fingers behind his head. He prayed that his once in a lifetime story would have a happy ending.

  
  


<<>>

_‘Vitenka, my love, come back to me.’_

The thought came to Victor suddenly, like a candle lit in a dark room. The omega felt drawn to it in the darkness. If there was light, there would be warmth...comfort. Victor dreamed...

_“Chris...what’s wrong with me?”_

_The Swiss skater looked over at his friend, a wrinkle of concern flashed between his eyebrows._

_“You need to be fucked, and often,” Chris replied jokingly. Victor smirked. He knew Chris meant every word of what he said._

_Victor launched a pillow at Chris’s face and plopped down on the bed next to him._

_“I need more than a fuck…” Victor sighed. “I want more than a fuck.”_

_“What is it you want Victor?” Chris rolled over and smoothed silver bangs out of his friend’s cerulean eyes._

_“Happiness. A feeling of ease...of not having to guess the other’s motives...acceptance. I need a feeling of safety...to be myself...not just a skater...not even just as an omega...all of me,” Victor moved his hand up through his bangs._

_‘I want a soulmate,’ Victor thought. He wanted the impossible._

_“Great sex isn’t even on the list then?” Chris chuckled. Viktor laughed._

_“I’m not opposed to great sex,” Victor said, still smiling while briefly catching his bottom lip in his teeth. The omega grew serious, “But, I think if I felt like I could truly relax and be myself, the sex would automatically be amazing...with practice, of course.”_

  
  


_Victor loved the touch of this beautiful man. Yuuri held him firmly as they danced, one hand at the small of his back and the other holding his hand. Victor felt so free. Yuuri was the perfect lead, and though wirey, the young alpha was strong. The couple was flushed with exertion, but neither wanted to take a break. The song would end and with a glance and a smile, they moved on to the next number._

_‘My god...I want him…’_

_‘I’m holding you my love. I’m here with you.’ Did Yuuri say that as they danced?_

_Victor looked down into the alpha’s bright gaze, ‘I could love him. I want to see this smile every day…’_

_‘Victor...my Vitenka...please come back to me. I love you. I need you.’_

_‘Yuuri?’_

_Victor looked over at Yuuri wearing his warm up clothes. The shirt sleeves were too long and the alpha was trying to play it off. The omega bit back a smile. He knew that he probably wouldn’t wash that shirt. He would keep it aside for their nest because it would smell like them...that smell..._

_‘My mate…’_

Victor could feel warmth. He felt gentle caresses on his chest, on his face.

“Victoru,” it was a muffled plea.

_‘Yuuri!’_

Victor’s eyes fluttered open. The omega turned his head to see Yuuri’s eyes bright with tears. The alpha was crammed in the bed next to him under the covers.

“I missed you…” Victor spoke softly. Yuuri reached for his mate, threading his fingers through Victor’s silver hair, and covered his mouth with soft kisses.

_‘You did it my strong, beautiful omega. Your interview saved us. Your quick thinking of showing them the phone app saved us. I’m so proud of you Vitenka.’_

Yuuri’s kisses moved onto Victor’s jaw before he buried his nose into his lover’s neck, drawing comfort from his scent of fresh cut roses. The scent had changed slightly...becoming more somehow.

_‘I thought I lost you. When they put me in that terrible room...I felt...like I was dying.’_ Yuuri moved under the covers until he lay on top of his lover, straddling him.

A sob escaped Yuuri’s throat and Victor reached up to soothe the alpha’s hair.

“It’s okay Yuuri.”

_‘You were so strong for me. Your love and warmth drew me back to you.’_ Victor’s arms moved under the covers to encircle Yuuri. “Hey, you’re not wearing any clothes.”

“Skin to skin contact was supposed to help. I am wearing underwear,” Yuuri said shyly. “What are you doing?” Victor began to wriggle out of the hospital gown.

“I want to feel you more,” Victor said softly. The gown slipped silently to the floor from the side of the bed. “That’s better.” They lay together, cuddled in each other’s arms, for a long time. Yuuri filled Victor in on what he had missed. Their thoughts and feelings moved freely across their soul bond. Yakov had called to check on Victor, but the conversation with Yuuri was awkward. Someday, the alpha thought, maybe they could return to St. Petersburg, for a visit, but not now. The pain was too fresh. Victor’s dads had stayed by his bedside for nearly 18 hours, until Victor's doctors assured them he had stabilized and that he would awaken soon. They took a flight from Sochi to St. Petersburg that morning, to rescue Makkachin and begin the packing up of Victor’s apartment. There was no reason to return. 

"Yuuri pushed up and looked into Victor’s eyes. “You will marry me, won’t you? I love you. I love you so much,” Yuuri paused. “You are my very breath.” _In Victor’s mind, he saw Yuuri’s hand come to his chest as he dropped to the floor. He felt the heaviness, the loss that Yuuri felt at the moment their bond was blocked. It was visceral and raw. Never, ever again._

“Yes...and yes. Yuuri I feel the same way.” Tears flooded Victor’s eyes. “I could never be apart from you like that, not ever again. You are my breath.” Yuuri kissed Victor, his soulmate, his love. It was a remarkable thing, to kiss your soulmate. Yuuri felt a tingling from the very tip of his toes, up his spine, and all the way to the top of his head.

_‘Can we just stay like this?’_ It seemed like they had the same thought at the same moment, which Victor found extremely funny. They shook with suppressed laughter for a moment before Yuuri burrowed his nose into Victor’s neck, seeking the pleasure and comfort of his mate’s scent.

  
  


**Nine months later…**

Victor squeezed a little of the yellow soap onto a washcloth, “One washcloth will probably do Yuuri.” Victor tried not to laugh, but couldn’t suppress his smile at the pile of baby washcloths that suddenly appeared at his right hand.

"You never know, " Yuuri reframed the image of his beautiful omega and his son taking his first bath. Tears blurred the image and he wiped them away, while trying to keep his phone still. Little Sasha had his hand balled into a fist, which he kept bringing to his mouth, moving his head back and forth, trying to latch onto it.

“Is he hungry?” Yuuri asked with concern.

“We have a little time before his next feeding,” Victor said softly, glancing at his watch. “He also likes to suck for comfort. Don’t you Sasha? Such a good baby.” The baby startled slightly when Victor poured a cup water over his shock of dark hair. Victor gently caressed the infant’s head, settling him. 

“It’s okay, baby. It’s okay,” the omega cooed. He washed his little hands and feet. He washed his body, careful around the little stub of the remains of the cord that had sustained his life for nine months.

Yuuri was just overcome with pride for his family as he continued to take the video. Happy tears coursed their way down his cheeks. His Vitenka was a natural mother and Sasha...Sasha was perfect. Victor laid the baby onto a towel and wrapped him up, before carrying him into their room next door. 

While Victor and Yuuri were generally rather neat, the room was cluttered with baby paraphernalia. Much of it hadn’t even been unwrapped, as packages from friends and family around the globe seemed to appear every day. Makkachin was curled into a ball in the middle of the bed with a toy between her paws. She had adopted a squeaky toy that looked rather like a plush caterpillar. They had tried to take it from her, but decided that it was a lost cause at this point. 

Soon, Sasha was dressed warmly and latched firmly to Victor’s chest. The omega was sitting between Yuuri’s legs, who encircled his family in his arms. Yuuri chuckled to see Makkachin nose his toy in between his Vitenka’s legs and scooched forward to join the cuddle.

_‘Makkachin didn’t want to be left out,’_ Yuuri thought, as he pressed his nose into silver strands of hair, inhaling. A deep rumble of contentment sounded in the alpha’s chest.

_‘No...no she didn’t._ The couple was quiet for several moments, listening to Sasha make the sweetest noises as he drank, almost like a little hum broken up with the sounds of swallowing. Victor could feel his alpha’s pride in them. He could feel his desire as Yuuri’s thoughts drifted to the last evening of love making they had together before Sasha was born. As Victor’s hormones had prepared his body for birth, he couldn’t get enough of Yuuri. After Yuuri won The Cup of China, they barely made it back to the hotel before their clothes hit the floor. The memory made Victor smile. A purr added to the quiet of the room.

_‘I love you…’_


End file.
